How to Select a Paddle
by Paul Donohoe
The first rule for selecting the right paddle to help you play better pickleball is to play with it before you buy it. How else can you learn how the paddle feels in your hand during a game? Will it give you the power you want for that smash down the middle while enabling you to have the touch you need for that sweet dink to the back of your opponent’s left foot? Does your arm feel tired after only one game or can you play the whole morning and still want more? You need to demo several paddles in game situations to decide which is best for you.
But there are many paddle companies and each company has many paddle models. How do you decide which ones to test?
Two factors immediately come to mind that will help narrow the choice: price and weight.
If you are wildly enthusiastic about pickleball, play almost every day, play in tournaments and constantly want to improve your game, then you can justify spending more on a paddle particularly if your personal finances allow you to ignore the price difference between a $50 paddle and a $150 paddle that will last for a year or two. If on the other hand, however, you are just learning the game and think you will always be a social player who is on the courts once or twice a week, spending less on a good paddle may be the right choice.
Pickleball paddles are available generally in weights between 7.0 and 9.0 ounces with paddles weighing up to 7.4 ounces considered to be lightweight, 7.5-8.0 ounces to be medium weight and 8.1 ounces or more to be heavyweight. You should play with the heaviest paddle that you can swing without losing arm speed or getting tired or injured because greater weight means more power for put-away shots. Smaller, lighter weight, older, less powerful players should opt for a lighter weight paddle while bigger, heavier, younger, more powerful players could choose a heavier paddle.
Once you have determined how much you will spend for a paddle and the weight range you want, there are still many paddles to choose from. How do you narrow the choices down to 3 or 4 paddles you want to try?
There are three attributes of paddles that will determine whether a paddle will enhance your play or not:
- Touch
- Power
- Forgiveness
The Touch attribute is a measure of the ability of the paddle to help the player control the ball in the soft game. The Power attribute is the ability of the paddle to transfer the power from the player to the speed of the ball. Forgiveness indicates whether a paddle will help a player execute a shot that is not struck with the exact center of the sweet spot. So if you are an advanced player who plays a soft game but wants the power for smashes when your opponents make a mistake, you should choose a paddle with a high rating for touch, a good power rating and not care too much about the forgiveness rating since you are able to hit the sweet spot almost all the time. Conversely, if you are a novice player, then the forgiveness of a paddle should be your most important attribute since you probably make more mishits and need support for keeping the ball out of the net and on the court.
Paddletek, the technology leader in pickleball paddle manufacturing, has developed a rating system comparing the value of these attributes within its product line. See the table below. Using this information you should be able to choose three or four paddles to test so that you can buy the paddle with which you feel most comfortable and which will improve your game.
Characteristics of Paddletek Paddles
| Paddletek Model | Price | Weight | Length | Touch | Power | Forgiveness |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix LTE | $59 | 6.9-7.3 oz | 15 5/8" | 7.5 | 7 | 7 |
| Horizon | $89 | 7.3-7.8 oz | 17" | 7.5 | 7 | 7.5 |
| Element | $89 | 7.3-7.7 oz | 15 5/8" | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.5 |
| Phoenix Pro | $89 | 8.3-8.8 oz | 15 5/8" | 7.5 | 8 | 7.5 |
| Bantam TS-5 | $99 | 7.0-7.5 oz | 15 5/8" | 8 | 7.5 | 7.5 |
| Bantam EX-L | $99 | 7.8-8.4 oz | 15 5/8" | 6.5 | 8.5 | 7 |
| Helo | $99 | 7.6-7.9 oz | 17" | 8 | 7.5 | 8 |
| Tempest Wave | $129 | 7.4-7.9 oz | 15 5/8" | 9 | 7 | 9 |
| Bantam TS-5 Lightweight | $149 | 7.0-7.5 oz | 16" | 8 | 9 | 8 |
| Bantam TS-5 Standard | $149 | 7.6-8.1 oz | 16" | 8 | 9 | 8 |
| Bantam EX-L Pro | $149 | 8.3-8.7 oz | 16" | 8 | 9.5 | 8 |
In conclusion, to find the best paddle to help make you a better player, choose your price point, think about what weight you should play with and consider the type of game you play and what you want from a paddle. Then choose three or 4 paddles to test. Select the one that feels best and get out on the court and play!
Paul Donohoe has been an avid pickleball player since he learned the sport in Florida 5.5 years ago. He is an active tournament player and has competed in Senior Nationals in Birmingham and in the US Open in Naples. He is a pickleball instructor in New Jersey and Florida, referees at many tournaments and is a Paddletek dealer for NJ. Contact Paul via email by clicking here. © Paul Donohoe 2018